Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to support to (a) local authorities and (b) Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council to identify new sites for the (i) expansion and (ii) development of existing hospital facilities.

The Government recognises that delivering high quality National Health Service healthcare requires the right infrastructure in the right places.

Integrated care systems (ICSs) are responsible for strategic infrastructure planning as well as managing the operational capital for their respective local areas. This includes expanding and developing hospital facilities. The Department is supporting local NHS organisations to better manage their estates, and systems have developed infrastructure strategies which will inform their decision making and estate management.

In this context, the Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council and other local authorities are encouraged to engage with their local integrated care board (ICB), the Greater Manchester ICB, to discuss opportunities for developing hospital infrastructure.